New Gundam TV series confirmed: Mobile Suit Gundam 00
A very short promo appeared after today's episode of TBS/MBS' "Toward The Terra" announcing a new Gundam series. Mobile Suit Gundam 00 (Double Oh) is set to air at 6pm on Oct 2007. The official site is up providing a streaming promo.

Known details are:
Setting - 2307 AD ("seireki", Japanese for "anno domini")
Characters - 4 Gundam Meisters, who pilot the mobile weapons.
Factions - Solestal Beings (not real sure on the English name right now), a private militia group whose purpose is to eradicate wars.
Tagline at the end of the commercial - "Rebirth begins through destruction"

Rumors about the series have been going around Japanese message boards for some time, especially after Sunrise registered several Gundam00 domains. The proclamation that the setting would neither be in the Universal Century of the original nor the Cosmic Era of Gundam SEED, as stated by Sunrise's Yasuo Miyakawa, seems to have been followed through with. Staff members are yet to be confirmed although the most persistent rumor is that the series will be directed by Fullmetal Alchemist's Seiji Mizushima.

-"Gundam 00 site update
The official site updated with an outline & staff section. Nobuto Sue's name is added alongside Kenji Teraoka and Hitoshi Fukuchi to the list of concept designers. Also worth noting is Kunio Okawara is credited third as a mechanic designer, behind Kanetake Ebikawa & Takayuki Yanase. In Sotsu Agency's press release, Okawara wasn't mentioned at all, potentially indicating a reduced role for him compared to his level of participation in other Gundam series. The official site will formally open on July 10.

The story outline:
"2307 AD.

As fossil fuels became exhausted, humanity found a new energy source to change their situation: A large-scale solar power system with three enormous orbiting elevators. However, only a few large countries and their allies reaped the benefits.

Three superpowers had ownership of the three orbiting elevators: The Union, based in the United States Of America, The People's Reform League, made up of China, Russia, and India, and Europe's AEU. The superpowers continue playing a large zero-sum game for their own dignity and respective prosperity. Even though it is the 24th century, humanity has yet to become one.

In this world where war has no end, a private militia appears advocating the eradication of war through force. Each possessing a mobile suit Gundam, they are Celestial Being. The armed intervention by the Gundams against all acts of war begins.""

I am very dispoint about this gundam 00, it seem just like gundam w and gundam seed all over again.
A group of stupid geeky kids, crying about the war, and then driving super mobile suit gundam killing people, that is just not right. Well.
And I am sure Bandai will once again make bunch $$$$ out of it.

Tachyon wrote:I'm glad there's a new Gundam series and it looks interesting but... When are they going to find the backbone required to further the UC setting?

In a TV series? Never. I think Bandai & Sunrise have clearly decided that new Gundam TV shows are for bringing in new viewers. That means that new Gundam TV shows will never be set in the UC -- the UC has too much baggage, it's intimidating to new viewers. I'm actually impressed that this new show happens in OUR calendar!

As for the UC, though, it is very much an active storyline. Between Gundam Evolve, MS Igloo, the Harmony Of Gundam campaign, the many manga stories in Gundam Ace, and all that, the Universal Century has a LOT going on. As Mark Simmons said to me, "the Universal Century is very much 'in hands'" -- that is to say, it's not necessarily "in GOOD hands", but it is "in hands" at least. His point being that a lot of the stuff that is being done with the UC right now is kinda kooky and continuity-challenging, but at least it's there...